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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



Chap.' .-.. Copyright No. 

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



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INTEMPERANCE 



AND THE 



TEMPERANCE CAUSE 



By CHARLES FFRENCH O'CONNOR. 



"The drunkard shall not obtain the kingdom of God." — St. Paul, 

Gal. V. *« He that is temperate shall prolong 

life."—Eccles. 




1895. j U 



1 &CL 



•0* 



COPYRIGHT, 1895, 

BY 

Charles Ffrench O'Connor. 



■ INTEMPERANCE 

AND THE 

TEMPERANCE CAUSE 



The drunkard shall not obtain the kingdom of God." — 
St. Paul, Gal, V. * ' He that is temperate shall prolong 
Kltr—Eccles. 



The vice of intemperance is so afflictive, an- 
noying, and unjust, not only to the intemperate 
himself, but to the temperate, that means are 
taken to remove it. There is no right to do so 
by coercion other than by just law, for more 
harm than good comes from it. 

It is an error to think that intemperance is 
the cause of all other crime. It is not, like 
money, "the root of all evil," and this say is 
mistaken to mean, there is no evil that money 
is not the cause of. Wine and liquor are not 
evil in themselves, for they come directly or 
indirectly from God, and the evil from them is 
from their abuse, or adulteration. The Scripture 



— 4 — 

speaks of the great good of wine, as well as of 
its great bad from abuse, and the medical pro- 
fession gives its testimony the same. The 
Scripture also says, " sober drinking is health to 
soul and body. " — Eccles. xxxi: 37. And if it 
did not say so, the truth is that what is good for 
the one is good for the other. St. Paul says, 
44 whether you eat or drink, or whatsoever else 
you do, do all to the glory of God." — / Cor. x: 
31. The observance of that alone would not 
only cause temperance, but greatly perfect us. 

A temperate use of intoxicating drink incites 
to noble doing, but as intoxicating drink is 
sensual, and the intellectual is superior to the 
sensual, it is only by the temperate use of in- 
toxicating drink that there is the good and true 
enjoyment of it. And if the intemperate will 
not be temperate, he is no man, he sins, is mean, 
despicable, and unworthy of the good drink. 
The prevention of the good of wine and liquor 
is not only by the intemperate, but by those 
who err as to intemperance. 

Intoxicating drink causes good spirits, and 
this is one of the reasons why it is taken. It 
is a luxury, and therefore it should be taken 
with wisdom. When taken to excess it mars 
or overcomes the intellect and causes a false 
pleasure which sometimes is bewitching, and 



therefore intemperance is sin, and an illusion 
and delusion. And it is on account of this 
pleasure that the degenerate intemperate will 
not be temperate. But as the false pleasure is 
sin, it has no merit, and the true which has and 
which is greatly the better, is destroyed by it. 
"Oh! that a man would put an enemy in his 
mouth to steal away his brains." As intemper- 
ance is sin, religion is the only remedy for it, 
and how in common sense can what is not ac- 
cording to religion be so. It is impossible for 
an intemperate to be temperate without God, 
that is to say without religion ; and all temper- 
ance causes that were not so, failed. 

As an instance of the efficacy of religion for 
intemperance, there is the prodigious and un- 
equalled success of the Very Reverend Theobald 
Matthew. As the intemperate knows he does 
wrong, and cannot govern himself, he should 
pray to God to help him, and if he will not be 
temperate, his intemperance, it is most likely, 
will be fatal to body and soul. No one can 
stand the thought of going to hell, but there are 
intemperates who do not care if they do go there. 
It is an error to think that we can be apart from 
God without being of the Devil. In a woman 
the evil of intemperance is to the utmost, and 
worse than in a man. 



— 6-* 

The intemperate are of all classes, and if the 
otherwise good and intelligent of them would 
reform, their influence to reform the others 
would be much. "When the wine is in, the 
wit is out," and there is more diversity of evil 
from intemperance than from any other vice. 
Intemperance is from pride, excites, is wicked, 
deranges and sometimes makes insane, conse- 
quently the intemperate is bold, fearless, auda- 
cious and scurrilous. He blasphemes, is quarrel- 
some, revengeful, violent, furious and like a 
demon, is malicious, heartless and brutal, in- 
jures, murders, or commits suicide. He is 
wayward, irresolute, a wanderer, unreasonable, 
inconveniences, annoys, and many of the intem- 
perate are artful, deceptive, and lie as to their 
intemperance. He teases, torments, is regard- 
less, reckless, noisy, insensible and causes dis- 
aster, is dirty and malodorous, but some of the 
intemperate are very cleanly. He is an intoler- 
able nuisance, and disgraces himself and others. 
He injures his body and mind, has bad judgment 
at times, even when sober, he prevents his 
getting employed, is foolish, wastes his money, 
is incompetent for profession or business, and in 
want or ruin. He weakens his constitution, is 
unable to stand much sickness, and soon dies, 
or has a sudden death, or dies from delirium 



— 7 — 

tremens. It is quite common for the catholic 
intemperate to die without the Sacraments. 
He causes to others frequent or constant care, 
solicitude, fear, dread, great suffering, agony, 
want, trouble, unhappiness, heart break, and 
death. And he has little or no discernment of 
that, and as to what he has, he is indifferent. 
"Oh! thou invisible spirit of wine, if thou hast 
no name to be known by, let us call thee Devil." 
The United States Government, the best of 
all governments, and most abused from dis- 
honesty, ignorance and incompetency, promotes 
the evil of intemperance because the tax on 
imported wines and liquors is high, and which 
causes bad ones to be made to sell at a less 
price and which also is high, because the poor 
and middle class who are temperate are deprived 
of the good, and who may need them in sick- 
ness or debility, or want them for pleasure and 
to cherish life, and thus the vampire govern- 
ment, by the political, drive many to intemper- 
ance, insanity or suicide. And because the law 
is not enforced as to every disorderly place 
where there is intemperance, if it was there 
would not be such a place. There can be ne- 
cessity to sell liquors on a Sunday, and if so 
there is no right to prevent the selling, unless 
there is fault given against just law. The Scrip- 



— 8~ 

ture plainly shows that Sunday is not against 
necessity. God does not prevent to go to Hell, 
but the fanatics do as they think. Shakspeare 
says, "the man that has not music in his soul is 
fit for murder, stratagem, and spoils." He uses 
the word music in a general sense, and it is 
exemplified by the false government and fanatics 
even as to murder, because the prevention of 
the poor could cause death, though there was a 
medical allowance which could not be had. 

There could be no law to prevent there being 
saloons, or to prevent a person from making a 
living by keeping one. The prevention would 
be the contrary of promoting temperance. At 
one time there was a law in New York to prevent 
the selling of liquor, but it was a dead letter. 
Unless there is fanaticism and despotism strong 
enough, it is impossible to prevent the sale of 
liquor. And a person's home where there is 
intemperance, is a bad place to keep liquor. 
Many of the intemperate will not steal anything 
except liquor, and if they have any scruple they 
think it too trivial to notice. 

The revenues from excise and high license are 
immense, and if it was not for this which suits 
the rich they would be more taxed. Tax luxury, 
yes, but this should tax the rich more than the 
poor. What do the rich care if they pay the 



highest prices for liquors, or they can buy at 
wholesale or import, should the temperate or 
intemperate be wronged in any way. In the 
revision of temperance bills, there is always 
wrong enough left to suit the political. 

The people of the United States of America, 
though subject, are indirectly sovereign, and 
they should use their suffrage to prevent the 
injustice of the government by the political in 
any way. That would prevent the domination 
of the constitution by the political. The duty 
to State is grave and of the highest, and there- 
for the merit and honor of being its representa- 
tive, and the citizen who does not his duty to 
prevent an unjust representative, and have one 
who is good and competent, is worse than the 
unjust representative and unworthy of citizen- 
ship. There is evil enough which cannot be 
helped without that which can be, and the good 
and competent apart from party should concert 
against the unjust politicians and see that they 
have nothing to do with their doing. That is 
the way to oppose them, it being the same way 
as they oppose, and therefor there is no need of 
revolution in this nation. Party nor State consti- 
tution should not be contrary to the Federal 
Place, pocket, and peculation are not pa- 
triotism. As to destruction, history does not 



— 10 — 

repeat itself as to this nation, because the politi- 
cal evil from incompetency, dishonesty, and the 
nation being praised keep it together, but it 
may yet dismember. When it was in its 
integrity, it was thought that all the prin- 
cipal nations of the world would become 
the same. It can only be maintained by the 
true blue. 

A right government is a republic, and when 
the people of a despotic government want to 
change to such, they must not think that the 
United States Government, the best of all 
governments, is not so, because it is abused. 
It is from the people, and when not abused it 
can prevent anything to the contrary of it. 

I notice one of the injustices to the intemper- 
ate. There is no right to arrest one who is but 
slightly intemperate and who does not break the 
law, though followed by a disorderly crowd of 
boys and girls. He occasions the disorder, but 
is not the cause of it. It is the crowd that is 
disorderly, not he. The good and intelligent 
policeman is like the good soldier, noble, manly, 
gentlemanly, honest, and of great merit, is ever 
discriminate to make an arrest. The govern- 
ment has only the right to punish to maintain 
the community, otherwise it is despotic, because 
God himself punishes us here or hereafter. 



— 11 — 

What is bad for temperance, religion, or other 
thing, is the erroneous assertion of him, ec- 
clesiast or secular, who is of note or distinction, 
being believed by him who should determine for 
himself, or be neutral. And of the two the 
latter is the worst, for the former has not com- 
mon sense, and the latter may have, but does 
not use it. We must go by truth, and not by 
self or another. 

I object to a pledge as a general one which 
states the quantity to take, because it may be 
too little, causing unnecessary abstinence, dis- 
agreeable privation, and perhaps the pledge to 
be broken, or it may be too much if taken at 
once. Because those accustomed to stimulant 
can take a larger quantity than those who are 
not, without intemperance. Because as consti- 
tutions differ, so does the quantity to take, and 
because by nature, conscience, experience and 
common sense we can tell if we are going to 
take too much, or should not take it at all, the 
same as in eating, and if this was not so there 
would be no accountability. The pledge of the 
Reverend Felix Varela, who was saintly, highly 
intelligent, and able, is the correct one. It is 
to be temperate, and if necessary to abstain 
entirely. It was attacked, and he vindicated it. 
The person who cannot take intoxicating drink 



— 12 — 

temperately should not take it at all, because it 
is best for him, and his intemperance is worse 
than that of the intemperate who could use it 
temperately if he would. 

Company is very dangerous to temperance 
where it is likely to cause to drink too much, 
and which is easily yielded to, through pride of 
human respect. When enough has been taken, 
the invitation to drink must be resolutely de- 
clined, or the company avoided. As the noble 
horse will not drink what is unclean, or not 
drink if it does not want to, should a man drink 
what is bad for him, or drink if he does not 
want to, and be inferior to a horse ? The in- 
temperate should not be prevented in any way 
from being temperate by the invisible Devil who 
ever seeks to destroy us in some way. The 
Scripture says, u we are a spectacle to Heaven 
and Earth/' and we should not give scandal. 
If there is any hardness to become temperate, it 
can be eased by weaning, to drink less at a 
time, or to weaken, or to change to a less stimu- 
lant, or other than alcoholic, or to take the mind 
from drink, and which may be easier done by 
occupation or diversion. If the intemperate 
would abstain in mortification, he would become 
temperate, such being the great virtue of self- 
denial. 



— 13 — 

Temperance means the use of what there can 
be intemperance with, and wine and liquor have 
ever been, and ever will be temperately used in 
the highest civilization which is christian. Still, 
as there is great danger from them to many, it 
is most wise for them to be moderate in their 
use, or not to use them at all. St. John the 
Baptist in his wisdom took no intoxicating 
drink. 

Intemperance is in all classes, and there is 
nothing more deplorable than to see an intem- 
perate who otherwise is good and interesting 
and more or less talented, injuring or destroying 
himself or herself for time and eternity. And 
there is nothing more meritorius than to con- 
vert such a one, it being not only for God, but 
for the intemperate himself and others. Oh! 
that all those who have not experienced the evil 
of intemperance, could realize its dreadfulness 
and were as desirous and zealous for temperance 
as those who are. I wish and hope and pray 
that the intemperate, as the matter is his own, 
will value for himself and others the good of 
temperance, and have the common sense, manli- 
ness and goodness for the love of God and him- 
self, and others, to take the good advice, or to 
determine himself, to become immediately tem- 
perate with or without stimulant, resolutely 



— H — 

bearing his self-denial till he has conquered his 
inordinateness. And having done so, he frees 
himself from the danger of loosing his soul, and 
has the proper use and enjoyment of his faculties 
for the design of God in him, and causes peace, 
joy, love and happiness for himself and others, 
and the respect and admiration of Heaven and 
Earth. 





jB?™r»Hr. 



1 



INTEMPERANCE 



I 



i 
i 



AND THE 



TEMPERANCE CAUSE. 



[pi 
i 



By CHARLES FFRENCH O'COHNOR. 



"T^ drunkard shall not obtain the kingdom of God." — 5?. Paul, 
Gal. V. "-He that is temperate shall prolong 
m life."—Eccles. 

1 



I 



ne:w YORK. 
1895. 



1 I 



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mSHSSLSE CONGRESS 



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